Lichfield is a city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. One of seven civil parishes with city status in England, Lichfield has a population of 31,000 & is situated 16 miles north of Birmingham and 124 miles northwest of London.

Lichfield is notable for its three-spired cathedral and as the birthplace of Dr. Johnson, the writer of the first authoritative Dictionary of the English Language. A Dictionary of the English Language, one of the most influential dictionaries in the history of the English language, was prepared by Samuel Johnson and published on April 15, 1755. Lichfield is also the birthplace of Elias Ashmole (23 May 1617 – 18 May 1692). Elias was a celebrated English antiquary, politician, officer of arms, astrologer and student of alchemy. He supported the royalist side during the English Civil War, and at the restoration of Charles II he was rewarded with several lucrative offices. Throughout his life he was an avid collector of curiosities and other artifacts. Many of these he acquired from the traveller, botanist, and collector John Tradescant the Younger. Ashmole donated most of his collection, his antiquarian library and priceless manuscripts to the University of Oxford to create the Ashmolean Museum.
Today Lichfield still retains its old importance as an ecclesiastical centre, but its industrial and commercial development has been relatively small; the centre of the city thus retains an essentially old-world character, with pockets of historic charm.

Contents

Get in

By road

Lichfield is well placed for the main road network being close to the A38, A5 and M6 (Toll) so is easy to get to by car. Parking can be more of an issue as the number of spaces is often not sufficient to cope with demand, especially on Saturdays. However, the city does not usually get busy until mid morning on Saturdays and before Christmas, so early birds do well.
Main car parks are as follows:

Off Beacon Street - Large car park at rear of shops, but tends to fill up first

By rail

Lichfield has two stations. Both are on the Cross City Line from Birmingham. Lichfield City station is served by four trains an hour, with every other train also serving Lichfield Trent Valley.
City Station is adjacent to the centre and is the easiest way for rail travellers to get in to the city.
Trent Valley Station is really useful because it is on the West Coast Main Line with regular direct trains to Birmingham, London, Northampton, Milton Keynes, Stoke-on-Trent and Crewe (change for Manchester, Glasgow and Liverpool). The Local trains also serve Tamworth, Nuneaton, Rugby, Rugeley and Stafford.

By bus

All bus routes into Lichfield call at the Bus Station, which is opposite Lichfield City Rail Station and adjacent to the main shopping areas. Buses serve destinations including Stafford, Rugeley, Tamworth, Cannock, The National Arboretum, Burton on Trent, Birmingham and local villages.

Get around

Lichfield is small enough to be able to get around most of the areas of interest in the centre on foot. There are local buses running on selected routes, but they generally are really of use only to residents.

See

There are many things to see and do in the centre of Lichfield and in the surrounding area. Within Lichfield, here are the main places to visit:

Lichfield Cathedral and Cathedral Close - the world's only Medieval Cathedral with three spires, dates back to the 7th Century.

Darwin House

Lichfield International Festival - well-established major music and arts festival every July with famous international performers at venues throughout Lichfield. [1].

Dr Johnson Birthplace Museum - inventor of the Dictionary and amongst England's best known literary figures. Dr Johnson was an essayist, poet, biographer, lexicographer and a critic of English Literature. Also considered to be a great wit and prose stylist, he was well known for his aphorisms. The single most quoted English writer after Shakespeare.

Do

Buy

Bakers Lane - Three Spires Shopping Centre. there are lots of shops in lichfield mostly down this road

Eat

Within the city there are many good places to eat out, most are situated on Bird Street. They are typically of high quality and attract customers from outside the city. Recommended restaurants include the following:

Indian

Eastern Eye

Qmin

Lal Bagh

Chinese

Ruby

Lee Garden

Crystals

Thai

Thai Rainbow

Spanish

Don Paco

Italian

Pizza by Goli

Ego, New Minster House, Bird Street, ☎01543 258234. 12:00 - 22:30.

Cafes

Cafe Nero

The Lounge

Dovestons

Fast food

MacDonalds

Subway

Numerous pizza, kebab and fish and chip shops

On Friday nights a mobile fish and chip van drives around much of Lichfield cooking and serving as they go - the food couldn't be fresher!

Drink

Queens Head, Queen St, 01543 410932. Legendary and friendly pub just outside of the city centre serving 6 top quality Real Ales. There is a huge cheese counter where customers can order cheese, pickles, bread to soak up the beer !

Stay safe

As with the rest of the UK, in any emergency call 999 or 112 (from a land-line if you can) and ask for Ambulance, Fire or Police when connected. It is free to call the Emergency Services from Payphones.

Lichfield is a generally safe city with most crime levels well below the national average. Incidents of violent crime and sexual offences are very low. However, as with the rest of the United Kingdom it is advisable to avoid large drunken groups where possible as alcohol-related crime is on the rise throughout the country. It is also advisable to exercise normal security measures.